


Chapter V: The Gnashing of Teeth, Part 1

by SallySS



Series: Love Trunk [5]
Category: Claymore
Genre: Bisexuality, Blood, Body Horror, F/F, Gore, Homosexuality, wlw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-20
Updated: 2016-10-20
Packaged: 2018-08-23 13:24:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8329510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SallySS/pseuds/SallySS
Summary: Excerpts from the daily life of Rona, a new addition to the warriors known as Claymore, led by the mysterious Organization. Follow her through her struggles and triumphs as she fights to survive against the flesh craved yoma and awakened beings.- The life of a warrior is not glamorous and each one struggles to convince themselves they're still human.





	

It was dark; pitch black to the point that one could sit in the room for hours and still not be able to see the furniture around them, for there were no windows and the doors were locked tight. The air was heavy with humidity from the damp stone walls, cooling the room to where the chill seeped into your bones and racked your frame from shivers. It was so cold no one could sleep, and yet they were thankful because it took their minds off the crippling fire that tore down the center of the warriors' body, the fresh radiating pain that caused the other youths in the room to sob and simper, sometimes wailing till morn. It was bad enough to be nearly blind in the room, causing Rona’s hearing to be heightened, but with her ears being pointed, they caught even more unwanted noise and funneled it into her head. She lay in her bunk, arms and legs draped off the sides, knuckles resting on the slick and cold stone ground, for her bed was child size like all the others. Rona was never one to care for children, she lacked that nurturing quality that came to Adaira so easily, but she couldn’t help but feel she needed to do something for her roommates that were many years younger than herself and had no previous experience with such immense pain.   
  
“Hey…” She called out, even the lightest voice seemed crystal clear in the darkness. The light shift of bodies in the room confirmed to her they were listening.    
  
“Come here.” Rona whispered, her voice soft and welcoming and she waited. Nothing at first, the two girls stopped their hiccuping sobs and sniffled, rubbing their faces, looking towards to direction of Rona’s bed. It took a few minutes but eventually they stood up, carefully shuffling their feet over to where Rona lay, and waited to see why she had summoned them over. Rona turned on her side, wrapping her arms around the two small frames standing next to her bed and picked them up, rolling back over to lie comfortably. She settled them in, the girls finally figuring out just what was happening, and they laid their respective heads on Rona’s chest, though there was little-to-no cushion. The youngins held each other’s hand and one sucked her thumb while Rona had her arms wrapped firmly around their ice cold bodies. For a while Rona couldn’t shake the feeling she was cradling corpses before they warmed up a bit. When her bleary eyes were greeted with silence and slight warmth, it seemed to be enough to drag her to slumber. 

 

She was immediately torn from that peaceful moment by a searing agony ripping through her. Her eyes shot open in terror and she could see the girls, face contorted with yoki, staring up at her with the predatorial yellow eyes and file-point teeth as their arms were plunged elbow deep in her abdomen, splitting her scar open as blood began to spill from the laceration and pool on the floor. Rona grabbed them by the shoulders and tried to throw them off but to no avail, their once feather-light frames were anchored into her with the monstrous power they held. She could feel their small clawed hands inside her, tearing apart her organs and splitting her further in half along the fault of her fresh scar as Rona could only kick and punch out at the cold air. They were eviscerating her, entrails and innards spilling out on the floor, but no matter how much Rona tried she could not scream, the sound catching in her throat and choking her; she had to sit there and take it, silent and without salvation. She gasped for breath through the blood pouring from her mouth, the pain excruciating and her head swimming in utter confusion. She tried to show them compassion, comfort them, and that's how she'd meet her end.

The thumbsucker stared Rona in the eyes, the bloodlust palpable in her gaze. Rona stared back, for what else could she do? The gaping maw of the child opened, dripping thick ropes of saliva onto Rona’s cheek as it raised itself over her head.  “ **You will die a monster like the rest of us**.”  The child belched forth, its voice an amalgamation of unspoken fears and unbridled rage. The jaw unhinged, letting Rona peer deep into her fate, and the youth dropped upon her with murderous intent.

  
  
Rona jolted awake from the grass, her fire having burned down to coals and the cold of the night creeping in. She was shaking completely, body drenched in sweat and she ran her trembling hands over her chest and stomach to confirm everything was indeed intact. She was where she had fallen asleep, next to the creek, using her uniform as a makeshift pillow, though it no longer was in a neat little pile, likely due to her thrashing about. She remembered those girls. It was true she shared a room with them in the past and comforted them that night, but once her eyes had closed they all slept as peacefully as they could in those underground rooms; it was none of this hellish nightmare she just experienced. 

The warrior ran her quivering hands through her hair that was wet once more, drenched in sweat. She got up, walking around and rubbing her arms, trying to soothe her frayed nerves. Never before had she experienced a nightmare that was so convincing; she swore she was still torn open, a dull ache in her abdomen. She certainly wasn’t going to sleep now, so she pulled on her uniform, looking at the modifications the organization made. Her pauldrons were now sharpened to points at the end rather than the polished oval shape the other warriors had, curving less downward but with added plate armor underneath so her shoulders weren’t completely exposed. Her bracers were downsized, now less than two inches long with a small covering over the back of her hand, almost not even worth wearing, but she figured that with an upgrade to one part of her armor, something else had to be downgraded. Rona thought the new armor looked pretty spiffy, but it didn’t help to take her mind off the nightmare and so she packed up her belongings and snuffed out the coals of her fire, setting out from her campsite long before the sun was to come up.    
  
Rona practiced with her sword as she walked, always trying to get faster without summoning upon her yoki, and early morning was the best time to do it when no one was traveling on the roads. No matter how much of her attention and energy she poured into her attacks, she still couldn’t shake that pain in her stomach; finally she sheathed her weapon and looked down at her fussy tum. “What has got you in such a mood?” she questioned, gingerly prodding the suture to see if it was perhaps infected. Her stomach responded with a resounding gurgle to pronounce it’s hunger and Rona hung her head, realizing that the last thing she ate was fudge. “Ok ok, point taken, the next town isn’t too far away.”

\---------------------------------

Arriving in town, it was a short time before sunrise; the dawn painted the sky with a mix of bright glowing reds and rich navy blues, the light chasing the darkness out of the sky to usher in a new day. Most of the townspeople were still in their homes, getting ready for the morning, but Rona could already smell the bakery hard at work, the aroma of fresh baked bread wafting to her nose. Her hunger drove her to follow the scent to the big oak door, carved with floral designs that added a quaint and memorable aspect to the business front. Rona knocked on the door since it was locked; she knew they weren’t open yet, but she hoped they might spare a minute to serve her since her stomach was throwing a tantrum. The door creaked open slightly and Rona looked down at two big green eyes peering back at her.    
  
“Oh, hello little one. Sorry to come so early, but I was hoping you had some bread to sell.” Rona smiled, trying to be as sweet as she could as to not frighten the child, but her efforts were met with an ear piercing scream and the child bounding to the back of the bakery. “Damn kids.” She muttered under her breath and stepped in, knowing she was going to have to explain herself. Inside, the smell of fresh ground flour made her stomach clench, demanding Rona feed it, though she tried to wait patiently for whatever parental-figure that was going to rear their head.    
  
A woman stepped out from the back, wiping her hands clean on her apron. She stopped in her tracks when she saw the Claymore before her, unsure of how to proceed. “I was not aware the town had sent for one of your kind; what is it that you need?”   
  
Rona shook her head, “No, no, I’m not here for work, I’m just passing through. However I’ve been traveling for a few days and I haven’t had anything to eat. The smell of your bakery made my knees weak and I was just wondering if you had anything yet to sell?” Rona had her hands clasped in front of her with a sheepish grin, hoping the proprietor wouldn’t meet her intrusion with animosity.   
  
The owner seemed relieved that the town was safe and let out a breath she was holding. “Take a seat, I was just about to pull the scones out of the oven.” Her voice wasn’t exactly bubbling over with hospitality, but it was one of the nicest people Rona had encountered since joining the organization. For warriors that saved people’s lives, no one really seemed to care having them around.    
  
Rona removed her sword, propping it up against a wall and took a seat at one of the tables. No sooner had Rona scooted her chair in, than the baker had returned; a small ornate plate in hand almost overflowing with two fluffy cranberry scones, a golden egg wash crust adorned with a light icing drizzle for sweetness, and a tall glass of milk straight from the ice chest. Rona couldn’t take her eyes off the food and when it was set down in front of her she almost forgot her manners. She stopped mid-grab and could almost hear Adaira’s reprimand, so she folded her hands, touching her forehead to her thumbs. “May the goddesses bless our hard work and punish the wicked, guide us to forgive those who repent, and show us strength in the face of adversity.” Rona looked up from her hands, the baker staring at her quizzically, but Rona continued, “And bring fortune to those who follow in your footsteps of compassion, for the love of mankind is the richest gift of them all. Amen.”    
  
The room was dead quiet a moment, the two women staring at each other. Rona folded her hands into her lap and averted her gaze, feeling a bit uneasy. She should have just ate like the ravenous beast the owner was no doubt expecting. “You know the prayer of the goddesses?” The owner finally broke the silence, her voice much more mellow, but still a touch accusatory.   
  
Rona nodded, “I do; spoken before every meal, as is proper.”   
  
“You realize that prayer is for humans right? Says nothing about your kind.” Her words lacked the venom Rona expected; it wasn’t a statement, it was inquisitive.   
  
“And I learned it when I was human… I still  _ am _ human.” Rona picked up the food, the thought of scone filling her belly was more appealing than this solid pit of unease that was forming from the confrontation. She only got a bite in before the looming proprietor had another question.    
  
“How do you know that you’re human?” Her voice was quieter, gentle, as if the answer she was looking to receive was crystalline and needed to be handled with the utmost care.   
  
Rona took a long swig of the cold milk, swallowing down the heavenly treat. She leaned back in the chair and slowly looked up at the baker, the silence ringing in your ears. “Simple. You don’t serve beasts on plates like these.”   
  
The owner stood up more straight, blinking and letting the answer sink in. She had been looking for some profound revelation from the Claymore, but was met with what seemed a quip.   
  
“You think I’m joking.” Rona took another bite, savoring the clash of sweet and tart, staring straight ahead. “You wouldn’t have served me if you thought me inhuman. I wouldn’t have been invited in, sat down, served food that you would serve a normal customer. People will talk of how i’m a silver eyed witch, how i’m just a well trained yoma, but if they were that scared of the warriors they wouldn’t say those things to where we could overhear. Some like to poke the bear, see if we’ll snap, but they know they won’t be harmed. I don’t know what sick satisfaction they get out of it, but they certainly would never talk to a yoma in such a way.”   
  
The baker looked down at her apron, smoothing it out with her hands, “I suppose when you put it like that, it does make sense. I’ll leave you to your food.” She removed herself, going back to her ovens.   
  
Rona ate slowly, and even though she was full in a few bites, she ate every last morsel, relishing in the flavor; the last thing she wanted was to come off as ungrateful. She felt the warm kiss of the sunrise hit her face as light began to spill through the window and everything seemed at peace in that moment. It was rare now that she ever traveled to a town that wasn’t being ravaged by monsters, it aided in putting her mind at ease.

**Author's Note:**

> I'd like to say thank you to those who are still with me. I'm really enjoying this story and I'm glad that I can entertain you all as well. I'm writing a new handbook for work so i'll be fairly busy the next few months, but I will certainly try to keep this story updated regularly.


End file.
